I'm 5'7 and had to lean forward on my 2010 Ultra which killed my neck and shoulders. I went with 12.5 Wild One's and that solved my problem.I was even able to go with a C&C solo which sits you down and back an inch. This combination is very comfortable for me.

 

Put +2 Sweepers on my this winter still waiting on the damn ice age to go away!

 

My step dad swears by mustang seats, so Ill be looking at them soon for a 2 up. Im also considering Road 6 Customs 10" Bagger Bars. Ive heard good things and Im a fan of the look. Figure If I was reaching before with the stock 12in bars on the BOB, maybe they were to high, or to far forward. So these I can do myself with stock cables and see how it goes.
Im 5'11 So based on a few things Ive been reading, theres really no way these will be to tall for me... I hope!?

 

My FLHTK kills the back & shoulders with the stock bars. Do these bars work with anyone???? Just WHO did Harley design these for???

Anyway... On my last bike (RK) I went with a bar that was closer and had much less pull back than stock. I could ride that bike all day and never feel an ounce of pain! My search for bars for my new EG centers on those two things - closer and less pullback. One test a friend of mine who rides and is an orthopedic doc, was this: He said hold your arms out in front of you like your riding and relax so your comfortable. Now look at the angle of your wrists. If you really study it, they're almost straight out - like maybe what a very mild pull back would be. Then he said to rotate your wrists outward - like you're breaking a stick in two. (That's the stock pull back on EG bars.) After only about 30 seconds in that position, you can feel the strain on your arm muscles going right up into your shoulders. So the lesson learned is that getting the right pull back is one of the critical things for long riding comfort.

The only bars I've found that would give me the perfect position like this is the Ergo Back Bars. As everyone has mentioned, they're crazy pricey! Anyone know of a more cost effective bar that is similarly shaped (The ergo back's are 35" wide, 13" rise with a 3" pull back)

 

Try this: Put your bike in a chock or have someone hold it so you can sit on it as if you were riding down the road. Close your eyes and hold your hands out to where they feel comfortable to you then open your eye and look where your hands are. Take note of how high your hands are, how spread apart they are and the angle of your wrists. That will be the measurement of your bars. More than likely you are going to be surprised with what you come up with.

 

Could not agree more with SurfnRide. Get the seat, footpegs, and floorboards sorted first. make sure those are exactly what you are going to stick with because they feel the best to you.

Then get comfy on the bike, close your eyes and put your arms amd hands out where they are the most comfortable for you and hold them there for a little while. repeat it a couple times to you have that position dialed. Then From there you can figure out how much rise, pullback and wrist angle you need to change from the stock bars and pick the ones that work best.

For me that meant I went with the stock streetglide seat, the HD adjustable backrest, a set of long leg iso footpegs and a pair of Khromewerks +2 swepers.

 

I had the same pains, first time it hit me I was 130 miles from home on a poker run. I thought I was going to have to rent a uhaul to get the bike home, no way I could have ridden it. The next stop was a bar for the next card, one of the guys who rides with us is a chiropractor, I have never been to one and I am 65, just someone twisting my neck gives me the ******. Anyway he asks where I hurt, I told him and he said he could fix it. So I laid on the floor of the bar, he popped my shoulder and the pain was gone, he said I had a rib out, I am thinking yeah right. Well I got almost hme before the knife was in my shoulder and neck again, made it home and scheduled x rays and then MRI, nothing showed up. Looked up this upper rib out deal on the net and found out lots of people have this. Some get permanent relief right away, some never do. The chiropractor gave me stretches to do, and told me to put a tennis ball in a sock, throw it over my shoulder, lean back against a wall and move around to massage the area when it hurts. It works, I tried 10" apes, no help, may not be your problem, but if you have the kind of pain I was having, you will try anything.

 

I was looking at the Batwing pullback bar that HD offers. They are $ 150.00 and are 2 inches closer and a little higher. Might want to check them out. You sound like me, I dont want to break the bank either.

 

FYI the HD Pullbacks are very much like stock bars that someone bent back toward the driver. The wrist angle is extreme, like pushing a wheelbarrow. If that doesn't bother you, disregard...

 

My bar change to 16" apes on my RKC was the best thing I have done for this old worn out body. The seated position is just normal now. However like someone else said solve the seat before you solve the bars.